You may remember a few months ago, I asked you to sign the No Child Born to Die petition – the Save the Children campaign to fund vaccinations for children in developing countries. Because each one of you took the time to do so, the campaign was a massive success. Our voices were heard. We made a difference.

This Saturday, Save the Children hosted a bloggers conference which many fellow bloggers attended. There is a continuing campaign to raise awareness, which is what this blog is all about.Please take a few minutes to sign the latest petition calling for healthcare workers.

Doctors, nurses and midwives are vital to saving children’s lives. But there’s a massive shortfall of health workers in the world’s poorest countries. As ever, the poorest and most vulnerable are hardest hit.
Half of the 8 million children who die each year are in Africa, yet Africa has only 3% of the world’s doctors, nurses and midwives.

Many of us take for granted the National Health System we have here in the UK. Whether it be midwives helping to safely deliver babies, health visitors who offer help, advice and support to new parents, GPs and clinics who treat illnesses and ailments and immunise our children, accident and emergency staff, cancer nurses, screening clinics and nursing staff. Healthcare professionals are there through every step of our lives.

Gemma at Hello it’s Gemma and Michelle at Mummy from the Heart have set us bloggers a challenge. To unite us and show our government and the world that we have a voice and we think that every child deserves the best chance in life.

Chris at Thinly Spread is currently in New York with Save the Children. On Tuesday she will be at the UN fighting for the rights of 100s of thousands of people who do not have a voice. The hope is that by Tuesday, 100 UK bloggers will have written a post like this, and written 100 words about a health worker who has made a difference in their life.

Here’s my 100 words. (this is health workers, plural, really)

After suffering from intense pains not unlike contractions, bleeding and general malaise for months I rang NHS Direct for advice one desperate morning. They quickly realised I was at the end of my tether and unable to cope, so they asked a Doctor to ring me, who then referred me to the hospital for urgent admittance. There I received IV steroids, painkillers, sympathy, a warm bed, regular meals and hope. I was terrified, but they calmed & reassured me and I am so grateful for all the staff I came into contact on that day. I now have continuing support and medication to help me deal with my colitis diagnosis.

If I’d lived in one of the world’s poorer countries, would I have got treatment and care like that? Quite simply, no I wouldn’t. My bowel was at risk of bursting, and that is potentially fatal. For all its faults, the NHS is a wonderful thing in many ways!

Please show your support and sign the petition. If you have a blog, please take up this challenge and write your own post and tweet the link with #healthworkers campaign.